A Saudi company and a German concern have been awarded the contract to mark the 1,500-km-long border between Saudi Arabia and Yemen, reported Al-Sharq Al-Awsat.

The companies involved are the Saudi Buildings Company and the Hanza Company. Saudi banking sources say that the local partner, which is owned by Kamal Adham, has been negotiating with a number of local banks about financing for the project. The cost of marking the border has been estimated at SR 1 billion.

A border agreement was concluded between Saudi Arabia and Yemen in July last year, ending a long-running dispute between the states. At the time it was agreed that an international firm prepare detailed maps outlining land borders, which would then be signed by the governments of the two states. The next stage would be to mark the borders.

The Yemeni-Saudi border dispute had had simmered since 1934, and at several times the two countries came close to war. – (Albawaba-MEBG)